HAMILTON , Bermuda -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Four Chinese nationals of Uyghur ethnicity who had been held at the U.S. military 's Guantanamo Bay , Cuba , detention facility have been resettled in Bermuda , officials said Thursday .

Attorney General Eric Holder says the U.S. is `` extremely grateful to the government of Bermuda . ''

`` Above all , this was a humanitarian act , '' Bermudan Premier Ewart Brown told CNN in an interview at his Cabinet office in Hamilton , Bermuda . `` We do n't see it as quid pro quo . ''

The four were twice cleared for release -- once by the Bush administration and again this year , according to a Justice Department statement .

They were among 17 Uyghur detainees at the facility set up to hold terror suspects .

The four were flown by private plane Wednesday night from Cuba to Bermuda and were accompanied by U.S. and Bermudan representatives as well as their attorneys , according to Susan Baker Manning , part of the men 's legal team .

President Obama has pledged to close the Guantanamo facility , raising questions of what will happen to the more than 200 remaining detainees . A political backlash against bringing any of the detainees to the United States has increased the focus on sending them to other countries .

Brown said he read an article on the issue of the Guantanamo Bay detainees ' fates in The Washington Post while he was in Washington for a White House meeting in May . He said he decided to put an offer to the U.S. government `` on the table . ''

He said Bermuda , a British colony , told London of its intentions , but not until late in the process . Britain must approve the transfer for it to be permanent , Brown said , adding that he believes the issue may raise tension between Bermuda and Britain .

The issue is controversial because of China 's opposition to the Uyghurs being sent to any country but China .

Uyghurs are a Muslim minority from the Xinjiang province of far-west China . The 17 Uyghurs had left China and made their way to Afghanistan , where they settled in a camp with other Uyghurs opposed to the Chinese government , the Justice Department said in its statement .

They left Afghanistan after U.S. bombings began in the area in October 2001 and were apprehended in Pakistan , the statement said . Watch concerns about resettling the Uyghur detainees ''

`` According to available information , these individuals did not travel to Afghanistan with the intent to take any hostile action against the United States , '' the statement said .

Manning said the 17 were picked up as a matter of circumstance and never had terrorist training .

They left China because they did not agree with the government , she told CNN .

However , China alleges the men are part of the East Turkestan Islamic Movement -- a group the U.S. State Department considers a terrorist organization -- that operates in the Xinjiang region . East Turkestan is another name for Xinjiang .

China on Thursday urged the United States to hand over all 17 of the Uyghurs instead of sending them elsewhere . The Chinese statement followed an offer by Palau , a Pacific island nation , to accept the Uyghur detainees .

The Xinjiang region of 20 million people is largely populated by ethnic Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities who have traditionally opposed Beijing 's rule and clamored for greater autonomy .

A senior U.S. administration official told CNN the State Department is working on a final agreement with Palau to settle the matter of the 13 remaining Uyghur detainees .

Issues to be worked out include how to transfer the Uyghurs to Palau and how much money the United States would give the men for resettlement , the official said .

The official said the average in such cases is $ 100,000 per person .

The United States will not send Uyghur detainees cleared for release back to China out of concern that they would be tortured by Chinese authorities . China has said no returned Uyghurs would be tortured .

Palau said it will take in the ethnic Uyghur detainees for humanitarian reasons and because of the `` special relationship '' between Palau and the United States .

Palau , with a population of about 20,000 , is about 1,000 miles -LRB- 1,600 kilometers -RRB- southeast of Manila in the Philippines and about 4,600 miles -LRB- 7,400 kilometers -RRB- west of Hawaii . It has received nearly $ 900 million in U.S. aid since independence in 1994 , according to congressional auditors , and depends on Washington for its defense .

In 2006 , five other Uyghur detainees were transferred to Albania , according to the Justice Department , which said it has no reports they took part in any post-resettlement criminal behavior or terrorist activities .

Since 2002 , more than 540 detainees have departed Guantanamo for other countries , including Albania , Algeria , Afghanistan , Australia , Bangladesh , Bahrain , Belgium , Denmark , Egypt , France , Great Britain , Iran , Iraq , Jordan , Kazakhstan , Kuwait , Libya , Maldives , Mauritania , Morocco , Pakistan , Russia , Saudi Arabia , Spain , Sweden , Sudan , Tajikistan , Turkey , Uganda , the United Kingdom and Yemen , the Justice Department said .

CNN 's Brian Vitagliano and Don Lemon contributed to this report .

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NEW : Bermudan premier : `` Above all , this was a humanitarian act ''

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Uyghurs are native Chinese Muslims ; the detainees were apprehended in Pakistan

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China urges U.S. to hand over all 17 Uyghurs held at Guantanamo Bay , Cuba

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Official says U.S. still negotiating with Palau to take remaining 13 Uyghurs